Dear Girl Who Will Always Be There,

It's crazy to think that we've offically graduated college with our degrees and are on our way to bigger and better things. (aka graduate school and more student debt) It's been a couple days since then and I have to say, I've had a lot of time to reflect on what these past 4 short years have taught me.

Along with the many congrats I got and endless questions regarding my next steps in life, the phrase "life-long friendship" entered my mind when a parent mentioned it to me while at a grad party. When we hear that phrase, I wouldn't argue that most of us probably think about a friend we've had since childhood. Someone who was quite literally our 'day one' or maybe even our 'day two', but that's not always the case I've come to realize.

With all wishes of success, I have also been giving out a lot of 'thank yous' to those who made college a great ride. Some of them being really close friends that I have made. However, that one phrase kept coming back into my conscious. Life-long friends. All of my close friends and myself are going seperate ways. Different towns, different schools, and even different states. With that, I had an unsettling thought of if any of these people would be a part of my life 5 or even 10 years from now.

However, there was one particular friend I thought of that I have full confidence will last a lifetime. It's you. The girl who was always there for me. Amongst so much uncertainity of where everyone's priorities lie in the future, I know that you and your friendship will always be one worth fighting for. We were never a part of the same friend groups, but we talked. We may not have seen eachother in months, but we stayed in contact. If not for having chemistry with you, I doubt we would've ever genuinely met and became the friends that we are today. For that, I am forever thankful.

You have been there for me in times where I lost myself. The times where I was on the verge of giving up my life, my vision, and my faith. You were that rock that I leaned on when I felt so alone. You're the one who reached out to me just to make sure I was doing okay. You never gave up, you were always there. Even in the good moments, you were still there. You're ambition, your goals and dreams, your hobbies, and literally everything else about you has always been in my best interests. Investing in a friend like you has left me feeling like the richest person in world- all because I know you're not ever going to go away.

You always seem to keep it together somehow, when everyone else seemed to be losing it. You never let stress or your emotions of life influence how you treated someone. You have such resilience and poise. I don't know how you did it, but you have become one of the strongest people I know. With such a kind heart and a smile that lights up this town, it's hard to not love you. You're a life-long friend.

You have compassion for others and a natural brillance that has served you so well these past four years. As you continue on to graduate school to become a physical therapist, I can't wait for the day when I can refer to you as 'Doctor'. I'm excited to see how much you grow in these next couple yiears in your journey, especially since we'll be at different schools. Just like undergrad though, we'll never not be present in one another's lives. From our future weddings, births of our future children, and even our future destinations, I hope to always be present in your life. We will always have closer friends outside the both of us, but as Brené Brown once said, "the first, important, thing a person can do to demonstrate friendship is to show up."

Regardless of how busy or how hectic or how complicated our lives may be, you'll always be at the top of my priority list. Friends like you are hard to come by, so who am I not to live each moment with you as if I can't ever have it again? A true, geniune, friend doesn't have to be with someone 24/7, rather they can go long periods of time without seeing someone and still be able to pick up right where they left off when they meet again.

As I near the end of this letter, I was want to make this final remark.

Fitting in with a particular group of people has never been easy for me and has given me a lot of anxiety and insecurity towards who I am as a person. You made it so easy for me to be myself and I wanted to let you know how much of a relief that was after freshman year. Everyone wants and needs someone who wishes the best for them and that's exactly what you have done for me. You showed me my self-worth and loved me when I didn't think I ever would be. We will continue on our paths that God has laid out for us, but I take a moment and thank Him everyday for blessing the road that lead me to you.

Life truly is more amazing when you're on the ride. Thank you for being you.

Sincerely,

Your #1 Fan